Description

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This is a comprehensive field guide to the milk mushrooms of North America. Featuring over 150 species and varieties, this volume includes detailed descriptions and more than 250 rich color photographs. The photographs were selected for high-quality color fidelity, documentary merit, and the aesthetic appeal of the subject. The number of species described and illustrated in color, some for the very first time, is substantially more than has previously appeared in any other single work devoted to the milk mushrooms of North America. With accurate, detailed, and easy-to-follow descriptions, this volume is ideally suited for both amateur mushroom enthusiasts and professional mycologists. In addition to the descriptions and illustrations, it includes sections devoted to the features and process of identification, to the ecology of milk mushrooms, and to the edibility of members of the genus Lactarius. Additional sections for species related to Lactarius and hyperparasites of the genus are included in this field guide.

About the Author

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Alan E. Bessette is a mycologist and emeritus professor of biology at Utica College of Syracuse University. He has published numerous professional papers in the field of mycology and has authored or coauthored nineteen books, including Mushrooms of Northeastern North America, Mushrooms of the Southeastern United States, and Boletes of Eastern North America. David B. Harris is a mycologist and botanical photographer who has collected and studied the genus Lactarius in North America for more than ten years. His photographs have won several awards in the North American Mycological Association's photo contests. Arleen R. Bessette is a mycologist and botanical photographer who has been collecting and studying wild mushrooms for more than fifty years. She has authored or coauthored eleven books, including Mushrooms of North America in Color, Mushrooms of Cape Cod and the National Seashore, and Common Edible and Poisonous Mushrooms of New York.